On December 24, at 4:56 Kyiv time, the Earth will again witness the approach of a huge asteroid. According to NASA, the 2024 XN1 asteroid, only noticed on December 12, will fly at a dangerous distance from our planet.
This space stone, 29 to 70 meters in size, flies at a speed of 23 590 km/h. Although the distance to the Earth will be 7.21 million km (approximately 18 times further than the distance of the month), it is classified as a potentially dangerous object due to the size and trajectory of flight. In the case of hypothetical collision with our planet, the impact force could be equal to an explosion of 12 million tons of TNT, which would cause the destruction on an area of about 2000 square kilometers.
Scientists also report another space object - an asteroid 2021 BA2, which will approach the Earth at 23:19 at 23:19 at 2,76 million km at 23:19. The size of this asteroid is estimated from 30 to 70 meters, and its speed is also striking. However, the threat of collision is almost excluded. The 2024 XN1 asteroid will return closer to Earth in January 2032, at a distance of 4.7 million km. And in December 2061, this space object will fly only 3.4 million km from our planet.
Such observations resemble humanity about the importance of space research and the importance of monitoring dangerous objects. Thanks to modern technologies, scientists can predict the trajectories of asteroids and warn in a timely manner about possible risks.
